An excerpt from The Power of Placebos: How the Science of Placebos and Nocebos Can Improve Health Care by Jeremy Howick. Copyright 2023. Published with permission of Johns Hopkins University Press.
“When he had asked me if I knew the cure for headache, I somehow contrived to …
A manifesto for the next revolution in nocebo and placebo studies
Defining tax loss selling
Tax loss selling, also known as tax-loss harvesting, is a strategy employed by investors to offset capital gains and reduce their taxable income. This approach involves selling stocks or other securities that have experienced losses to counterbalance capital gains realized throughout the year. By doing so, investors aim to mitigate their tax liability and potentially improve their after-tax returns.
Mechanics of tax loss selling
Identifying losses. Investors begin by …
How to sell your losing stocks to reduce taxes
After 32 years working as an ICU nurse, I believed I had developed a strong capacity to confront death alongside my patients. I had become accustomed to the challenging scenarios: co-morbidities, multi-system organ failure, emergency intubations, ventilators, pressors, central lines, art lines, failure-to-thrive cases, code blues, and the grim sounds of ribs cracking during CPR.
It was not uncommon to witness families desperately shouting, “Do everything,” even when there was little …
From ICU to kidney mass: a nurse’s journey of fear
Representatives of a battered and stressed Canadian medical profession gathered in Montreal and virtually last week for the 7th annual Canadian Conference on Physician Health (CCPH) – the first such meeting in four years and the largest to date. One of the main pain points identified as facing individual physicians is the burden of administrative work, and this was the focus of a special cross-border plenary session featuring Canadian Medical …
Physician well-being: Overcoming administrative hurdles
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Join L. Joseph Parker, a research physician, as we explore the intricacies of depression treatment. We’ll delve into the prevailing theories about serotonin, the delayed effects of SSRIs and SNRIs, and the emerging neuroplastic theory of depression. …
Depression treatment with ketamine and SSRIs [PODCAST]
If you find yourself heading down a rabbit hole pursuing a diagnosis, consider using a Markov chain to get back out. No, it’s not a physical chain. It’s a metaphorical chain.
In mathematics, statistics, and research, a Markov chain is a series of branching events where the options of what comes next at each branch point are not limited by what happened at a previous branch point. That is, each step …
Escape diagnostic rabbit holes with Markov chains
Health care is constantly evolving, and it’s no secret that many hospitals are bleeding money when it comes to their primary care practices. On the low end, a hospital loses $127,000 per year on a primary care physician. Anecdotally, a rural hospital in Indiana expressed that they lose nearly $500,000 per year!
Headlines are filled with stories about rural hospitals (& many others) struggling to keep their …
Health care’s hidden problem: hospital primary care losses
I, like many of my peers in medicine, am a terrible sleeper.
And it’s no wonder, after all. I spent the better part of my twenties and thirties training my brain not to give in to sleep when I needed it. Then, in the rare hours I did sleep, I was forced to wake at a moment’s notice and go from deep sleep to high alert. Sometimes, I was asked to …
How medicine’s demanding training took my sleep away
In the rural area where I practice, two general surgeons recently retired, a medical oncologist moved out of the community, and two urologists left over a year ago. My patients with cancer are left wondering who will care for them. And this small community is not alone. An aging physician population, burnout, and understaffing of other health care workers all contribute to rising rates of physicians moving and leaving communities.
One …
Navigating physician shortages in rural communities
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Join Natalya Beneschott, a pediatric infectious disease fellow, as she shares her personal experience and insights on coping with the lasting impact of a patient’s death, the challenges medical professionals face in processing grief, and the importance …
Coping with grief in health care [PODCAST]
In the Japanese tradition of kintsugi, broken things are repaired with gold joinery. The repaired object is even lovelier than the original. The breakage and repair become an acknowledged part of the object’s history. The scars and wounds are cherished rather than disguised. What a beautiful reminder to harness the powers of darkness and light that exist within us and the world.
In the book, Born for Love: Why Empathy …
Kintsugi: Embracing brokenness and empathy
The health care industry is witnessing a transformative phase with the integration of artificial intelligence (AI). AI’s ability to process vast amounts of data and provide predictive insights is revolutionizing medical diagnostics and patient care. AI’s precision is invaluable in diagnosing and managing kidney disease, offering both speed and accuracy in analyzing patient data.
Unleashing the power of data
A major challenge …
The synergy of AI and human intelligence in transforming health care
Six months after being diagnosed with gastroparesis, I underwent experimental intravenous immunoglobulin treatment. What is often considered a wonder drug, with the ability to treat hundreds of rare illnesses, resulted in the worst experience of my life. I suspect that I developed aseptic meningitis, feeling like I had brain-damaged myself.
What is intravenous immunoglobulin?
Immunoglobulin is found in plasma, which is a part of your blood. It contains antibodies that help you …
Intravenous immunoglobulin for gastroparesis: What happened to me
Every physician has a story to tell, about their medical training, about their clinical work. Every story is unique. Simultaneously, there are common shared themes about the joys and the difficulties. These experiences are universal, regardless of gender, specialty, or geographic location.
I asked two physicians, a female ER doctor on the East Coast in the U.S., and a male trauma-informed physician-coach in the U.K., to tell us how their experiences …
Physicians turn feelings of frustration and powerlessness into purpose and hope
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We sit down with guest Andrew Wilner, a neurologist, to explore the transformative impact of artificial intelligence on medicine. Join us as we discuss how AI is changing the role of health care professionals, the tasks it …
AI and the patient-physician relationship [PODCAST]
My son’s favorite thing to do is fish. I bought him a brand-new Mickey the Mouse fishing pole and a tackle box for his birthday. His favorite spot was on a small inland lake in a state park. On the bank of the lake, we would fish underneath a large cottonwood tree decorated with bobbers and lures that had become snagged in the branches.
The tree was tall and old and …
From fishing licenses to gun control
As the year draws to a close, it is important that we maximize our opportunities to reduce our taxes. Let’s explore three essential moves that doctors should consider before the tax year concludes to reduce their tax liabilities.
1. Contribute to tax-advantaged retirement accounts.
One of the most effective ways for doctors to reduce their taxable income is by contributing to tax-advantaged retirement accounts. Not only does this help build a secure …
3 key things to do before year end to reduce taxes
The NFL season is now in full swing, with TV screens ablaze in households across the nation, eyes glued to an elliptically-shaped ball being thrown and kicked far distances. This reminds me of an incredibly rare case that happened to a male patient I saw in the ER many years ago, whose right testicle had jumped into his abdomen after he lost control of his motorcycle on the highway. My …
How the NFL offers a window into health care solutions for our country
After decades of “doctor knows best,” the traditional physician-patient relationship is on the verge of a monumental shift. Generative AI tools like OpenAI’s ChatGPT, Google’s Bard, and Microsoft’s Bing are poised to give people significantly more power and control—not just over their personal lives and professional tasks but over their own medical health, as well.
As these tools become exponentially smarter, safer, and more reliable (an estimated Read more…
How generative AI will upend the doctor-patient relationship
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Join guest Harvey Max Chochinov, a psychiatrist, as he delves into the profound concept of “intensive caring” in palliative care. Inspired by Dame Cicely Saunders’ powerful quote, “You matter because you are you,” Harvey discusses how this …
Intensive caring in palliative care [PODCAST]
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